Panasonic annonuces Lumix GH4 - a 4K capable micro four thirds

The camera extravaganza called CP+ will be held in Yokohama, Japan,  from 13th to 16th of February. But looks like camera makers are already announcing their products. Panasonic annonuced their latest flagship - the Lumix GH4, its micro four thirds camera with 4K video shooting capability, making it the first micro four thirds camera to sport that functionality. It comes with a 16MP Live MOS sensor with the quad core Venus Engine IX processor to allow 4K video shooting, 12 fps burst mode shooting and full HD shooting at 200 Mbps.   [caption id=“attachment_217916” align=“aligncenter” width=“625”]  Panasonic Lumix GH4 is the first micro four thirds camera to support 4K shooting mode[/caption] The Panasonic Lumix GH4 is a successor to its video-centric GH3, which is expected to stay on. The Lumix GH4 can shoot at a resolution of 3840x2160 ‘Quad HD’ and 4060x2160 ‘Cinema 4K’ at 24 fps with a 100 Mbps bit-rate. Panasonic has also introduced a companion pro audio/video interface along with the GH4. [caption id=“attachment_217912” align=“aligncenter” width=“620”]  Panasonic Lumix GH4 seen here with the audio time codec adapter[/caption]   Panasonic Lumix GH4 uses what it calls, ‘Depth from Defocus’ AF system which allows it to acquire focus in 0.07 secs. It sports a 2.36 million-dot OLED EVF, a 3-inch 1.04 million-dot OLED tiltable display, an ISO range of 200 to 25,600 and takes in SDXC cards.   [caption id=“attachment_217913” align=“aligncenter” width=“508”]  The top portion of the Lumix GH4 looks a bit spartan for a flagship camera[/caption] The GH4 integrates Wi-Fi connectivity (IEEE 802.11 b/g/n) with NFC (Near Field Communication) technology to offer a more flexible shooting experience and instant image sharing with easy operation. The GH4 comes with a variety of connection terminals for more flexible shooting options. The 3.5mm microphone jack is for high quality audio recording using an external microphone and the 3.5mm headphone jack which enables monitoring the audio while shooting video real-time. It is also capable of real-time image output on an external monitor via an optional HDMI micro cable simultaneously while recording video. The Panasonic GH4 also supports features such as focus peaking, silent mode operation, luminance level adjustment and much more.   Pricing and availability details are not out yet, but there are strong indications that price will be under USD 2000 (approx Rs 1,24,565). We shall hopefully find out these details at CP+ in the coming week.